Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, a 2016 Democratic presidential candidate, says he’s supportive of certain gun control measures but that they’re not a cure-all and that it’s important for people in urban areas to understand the cultural ties the issue has for people of rural America.

“I think guns and gun control is an issue that needs to be discussed,” Mr. Sanders told NPR’s David Greene in an interview that aired Thursday. “Let me add to that, I think that urban America has got to respect what rural America is about, where 99 percent of the people in my state who hunt are law abiding people.”

Mr. Sanders said his home state has tens of thousands of people who are hunters and who enjoy the outdoors, and has “virtually” no gun control.